FILEnetworks Blog: Full version of Left 4 Dead leaks to internet

Valve’s highly anticipated zombie shooter Left 4 Dead was susceptible for leaks and hacks since the very beginning perhaps due to the immense media hype the game received. Initially fans found a hack to get into the exclusive early access demo without pre ordering the game and then the actual demo itself leaked to BitTorrent. Now, about 5 days after the game’s official release, a full copy has been leaked to BitTorrent trackers, FTP sites and one click hosting sites around the world. The release comes from SKIDROW, a group from the warez scene who usually release lesser known PC titles. Actually, there have been several leaked versions of the full version of Left 4 Dead floating around in P2P networks for a few days but this is the first release by a scene group.

If you are a pirate and thinking of downloading a torrent of the full version of Left 4 Dead, there is something you should know. Even though you are able to play the single player campaign, you will not be able to play the multiplayer or coop without a valid steam account (online play is usually impossible in modern games if you do not own a legitimate copy). SKIDROW’s NFO does not speak of a crack and in fact Steam protection is very hard to be cracked. Even to play Left 4 Dead over LAN, players need to join through Steam. However, given the game’s popularity, it is likely that there will be many private servers or cracked servers for Left 4 Dead like there is now for Counterstrike and CS: Source. Already, several workarounds including console hacks and no steam servers for Left 4 Dead have surfaced that allow pirates to play the game on LAN but there is no guarantee that Valve will patch these up.

Developer Description

From Valve (the creators of Counter-Strike, Half-Life and more) comes Left 4 Dead, a co-op action horror game for the PC and Xbox 360 that casts up to four players in an epic struggle for survival against swarming zombie hordes and terrifying mutant monsters. Set in the immediate aftermath of the zombie apocalypse, L4Ds survival co-op mode lets you blast a path through the infected in four unique movies, guiding your survivors across the rooftops of an abandoned metropolis, through rural ghost towns and pitch-black forests in your quest to escape a devastated Ground Zero crawling with infected enemies. Each movie is comprised of five large maps, and can be played by one to four
human players, with an emphasis on team-based strategy and objectives. New technology dubbed the AI Director is used to generate a unique gameplay experience every time you play. The Director tailors the frequency and ferocity of the zombie attacks to your performance, putting you in the middle of a fast-paced, but not overwhelming, Hollywood horror movie.

Addictive single player, co-op, and multiplayer action
gameplay from the makers of Counter-Strike and Half-Life
Versus Mode lets you compete four-on-four with friends,
playing as a human trying to get rescued, or as a zombie boss
monster that will stop at nothing to destroy them.
An advanced AI director dynamically creates intense and unique
experiences every time the game is played
20 maps, 10 weapons and unlimited possibilities in four
sprawling movies
Matchmaking, stats, rankings, and awards system drive
collaborative play